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On Friday 1^st November 2013, the High Sheriff of Belfast held a Gala Dinner for Belfast Eagle to help raise funds for the unit. This event was held in the Great Hall in the BelfastCity Hall. Special guests that attended the night included the High Sheriff of Belfast, Councillor Brian Kingston and his wife Eileen Kingston, Northern Area Sea Cadet Officer, Captain Peter Adams and his wife and finally the unit President Nigel Dodds OBE MP and his wife Diane Dodds MEP.

On arrival, guests were entertained by a choir and had the opportunity to mingle with friends, family and members of Belfast Eagle. Following on from the choir, there was a four course meal. During the meal, there was a String Quartet which gave the event a sense of grandeur.

Once all of the meals had been finished and dishes were cleared, Belfast eagle held a raffle which gave the opportunity of those that attended a chance to win one of forty prizes. The prizes consisted of donations from local businesses/ companies including Toyota, Benedict’s, Mooney’s Butchers, JC Barbers and Batesy Skips and from friends and family which included hampers, bottles of wine, iPads and free hair dye, cut and blow dry. Following on from the raffle, there was an auction on a painting painted by a local artist and a bottle of fine red wine. After huge interest in the painting, it was sold for £100 and the bottle of fine red wine sold for £50. Speeches were then given by Belfast High Sheriff Councillor Brian Kingston, Belfast President Nigel Dodds OBE MP and the unit chairman Andy Neill. 

At the end of the night, there was a bar that Belfast Eagle ran and there was live music from ‘This Way Up’. The band was fantastic; they were able to get everyone onto the dance floor and played a mixture of old and modern music. 

The total amount raised is still unknown but Belfast Eagle would like to thank everyone that attended and made the night an enjoyable one. The Unit Management Committee and other members of staff gave up many hours of their time to ensure that the event was as successful as it was. If it wasn’t for the High Sheriff of Belfast Councillor Brian Kingston, the event would not have occurred. Each year the High Sheriff of Belfast gets to choose four charities of their choice and hold four events in the Belfast City Great Hall, one for each charity. Belfast Eagle is highly grateful and honoured that he chose Belfast Eagle as one of his charities this year and would like to thank him again.

On Sunday 20^th October 2013, the 208th annual national Trafalgar Day parade in Trafalgar Square, London was held. 500 cadets from across the UK took part in a spectacular display and parade, four of which were from Belfast Eagle. The four cadets involved in this parade included POC Nikita McCoubrey, AC Patrick Bingham, AC Rachel Hanna and CDT1ST Connie Dalton. 

To take part in this event, the four cadets had to travel during the late hours of Thursday night and the early morning of Friday by ferry and coach. Once in London, the cadets did not have a chance to have a break, they had to start their many hours of practice to ensure that every cadet on the day knew exactly what to do.

On the day, the cadets wore their best no.1 uniform, took up their places in the parade and march through Trafalgar, down The Mall and pass BuckinghamPalace. The streets were lined by the public clapping and cheering the cadets on while they were passing them.

This was an amazing experience for the cadets and is one which they will not forget. Belfast Eagle is so proud of these cadets as they did not just represented Northern Ireland Sea Cadets well, but also the unit.

After two years of purchasing the unit mini bus, Belfast Eagle has finally personalised the mini bus with the Sea Cadet logos and contact details. With the new bus stickers, the unit is now able to promote the unit when out and about. This will hopefully help with the recruitment of new cadets and staff members.

After a very busy year for the unit from moving units, replacement of the Commanding Officer and the busiest summer full of activities the cadets have had yet; this is another mile stone the unit has reached.

Belfast Eagle Sea Cadets would like to congratulate the cadets that got promoted on Monday 16^th October. James Smith, Connie Dalton, Jack Gray and Ethan Barnes all got promoted to Cadet 1^st Class from Cadet. Kelsie Gray got promoted to Cadet after holding the rank of New Entry.

Over the past year, these cadets have shown that they are dedicated to the cadets by attending on a regular basis despite the many changes the unit has gone through. To get promoted to their new ranks, each cadet had to complete between 18-48 core modules and attended unit events.

Keep up the hard work guys and let’s hope you can get promoted again this time next year.